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Was the Depression the Decisive Factor That Led to the Nazi Seizure of Power Many factors combined to make the Nazi seizure of power possible including it has to be said a certain amount of luck Obviously in considering how the Nazis came to power there is the traditional split between long term and short term factors This split has been a particularly contentious area of historical research in relation to Nazi Germany Some of the more ridiculous pieces of historical writing have attempted to prove that defects in the German character which predisposed Germans to Nazi rule can be traced as far back as Luther and beyond A more sensible starting point for examining the origins of the Nazi movement is 1918 however To say that the events of 1918 came as a great shock to Germans is probably an understatement The war had been launched in a wave of patriotism unity and optimism in 1914 a moment Hitler regarded as one of the happiest of his life In the East the war had gone particularly well for Germany victory had seemed within her grasp The defeat armistice and crushing terms of the Versailles settlement therefore left many Germans in a state of denial about the course of events As a result many readily believed and found solace in various conspiracy theories that appeared It was a conspiracy of world Jewry and Germany had been stabbed in the back by traitors at home while Germanys brave heroes remained undefeated at the front One of the many caught up in the turbulent emotions and politics of the period was an obscure Bavarian Corporal called Adolf Hitler After the war he was an education officer to liaise between various political groups and the army As a result of his job he joined the NSDAP and with the authority his public speaking abilities gave him he rapidly rose in importance to become the undisputed party

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